When Carlos Alcaraz enters a hard moment on court, he says three words to himself out loud: "Carlitos, make some magic." It is not a pose for the cameras - it is a technique psychology knows well, and one every one of us can use without serving a single game in our lives.

What the athlete is doing is called self-talk - the way we talk to ourselves when we are under pressure. Teresa Hero, a personal-development coach, explains the mechanism simply: "The way we talk to ourselves can boost confidence, help us calm our nerves and keep our focus in moments of pressure." The nervousness does not disappear - it just stops taking up all the space in your head.

The distinction Hero stresses is key: motivation is not vanity. Motivation reminds you of what you already have to cope with the situation; vanity seeks other people's approval and a sense of superiority. When you tell yourself "I'll give it my all," that is motivation. When you tell yourself "I'm better than everyone," that is something else, and it does not last long.

The practical part is simpler than it sounds. First, notice how you talk to yourself when things go wrong - most people are not even aware how harshly they beat themselves up inside. Second, replace the blocking voice with a sentence that leads to action: instead of "I can't," say "I'll try my best." Third - and most important - practice it before the important moments, do not improvise under pressure.

The Balkan person is a master at one thing: beating down their own self-esteem with generations of experience. "I'm nothing," "I won't make it," "others are better" - these are sentences we hear at home from a young age. That is why this piece of news is not about tennis. If a guy who serves for millions has to consciously practice how he talks to himself, maybe we too can stop being our own harshest critic inside our own heads.